Over 30 years experience in technical development under contract to a wide range of clients
• Electronics:
o Analogue & measurement
o Power conversion and control
o Audio
o RF
o Ultra low temperature
• Mechanical:
o Structures
o Plastic mouldings
o Mechanisms
o Motion systems
• Control software:
o Embedded processors & programmable logic
o Real time
• Thermal:
o Thermal management of electronics
o Heating, cooling and active temperature control
o High temperature & refractory
o Ultra low temperature
• Optics:
o Imaging
o UV
o Sensing and measurement
Project-based development
Development work can be contracted in flexible ways, but normally it is project-based and often divided into stages. The benefit is that clearly-achievable objectives can be set for each stage, with time and cost budgets.
Where a development has significant uncertainties, either about feasibility or the best way to implement something, then early stages can concentrate on the risks and unknowns. As the implementation and the development path become more certain, later stages address details and product complete prototypes.
Useful techniques for “de-risking” developments include:
o Research of related products an existing patents to identify key issues and approaches
o Modelling and simulation of critical elements
o “Proof of principle” prototypes of critical elements
o Fast prototyping, to try out concepts and reveal issues
o Automated testing, to speed up evaluation of successive prototypes and improve quality of data